Why did Ebola-afflicted doctor go bowling?

New York City is on edge after a doctor who went to Guinea to treat Ebola patients came down with the disease.

Dr Craig Spencer, a physician from Doctors Without Borders, tested positive for the deadly virus six days after returning from the African country, Mail Online reported.

This case highlights the challenges involved in containing the virus, especially in a metropolis.

The 33-year-old had travelled on the A and L subway lines on Wednesday night, visited a bowling alley in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, then took a taxi back to Manhattan, New York Times reported.

New Yorkers flooded Twitter in panic revealing their fears after visiting the bowling alley and taking the subway.

One exclaimed: "He took the subway from Harlem to Brooklyn? You literally have to go through the entire city subway system to do that." Another said: "Now that Ebola is here, I ain't taking the subway no more."

Another wrote: "Ebola found its way to NY? I'm sick."

Social media was also awash with rants, confused questions and darkly funny jokes as New Yorkers try to understand one thing: Why did Dr Spencer go bowling?

FEVER

Health officials on Thursday night maintained that he was not contagious before his fever started on Thursday morning.

"Absolutely no sympathy for a doctor who knows he's been in contact w/Ebola, goes bowling, takes 2 subways, has contact with girl, Uber. none," tweeted @ericbolling.

This is an example of the angrier responses to Dr Spencer's decision to head to bowling alley The Gutter.

Cynical jokes about Ebola also reared its ugly head.

One of the most common reactions to Dr Spencer's diagnosis came from his choice of destinations on Wednesday: Brooklyn.

More specifically, his choice to go to Williamsburg, a neighbourhood frequented by hipsters and other trend-starters.

"Great," tweeted @senorwinces. "Now all the hipsters in Williamsburg get to brag about how they got Ebola before everyone else."

Mr Robert Cedano, who works in Dr Spencer's Harlem building, said he is worried about catching the deadly disease. "It's worrisome," he told The New York Post.

"But he's been away for a long time. I don't know when he got back. But he is gone now, so I am relieved. We just can't let anyone in the building right now except for the police and the health department."

New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene Commissioner Mary Bassett said Dr Spencer had contact with four people - his fiancee, two friends and an Uber taxi driver, ABC News reported.

His fiancee, identified by a family friend as Ms Morgan Dixon, is under quarantine at Bellevue Hospital while his two friends are quarantined at home, Dr Bassett added.

This article was first published on October 25, 2014.
Get The New Paper for more stories.